Library: The Most Lively Place on Earth

A library is the most lively place on earth. I know I know, most of you are thinking, what the heck am I talking about!

Just, hear me out first. A library is, at first glance, a place where quite and silence rule, and the withering glance of a librarian can turn you into the meekest of mouse. But, it’s not just that. Its so much more.

It’s where you can be anybody and everybody. I’m not saying that a library is not the things mentioned above. But only if you look at it from afar. Look closely and you’ll find a whole new world to enjoy and observe. A world that beats steadily like a soft drum, or maybe a heartbeat, and all this makes a library one of the most interesting places.

There is not a single moment of boredom, if you are willing to look beyond the obvious. I swear.

Morgan Library and Museum, New York credits: orginally published on the blog-” morethanmidtown” written by Jen Ryan

The quite scrapping of the chairs being pushed in or out, the shifting of a person making themselves comfortable in their seat. That scratchy sound of a page turning and that thump of a book being placed at the librarian’s desk, also that impatient tapping of a foot waiting to just get going with their book.

A library is full of sights and sound, some surprise elements that make it only more interesting, like when you are walking down a aisle and suddenly you might come across a person, sitting right there, on the ground, too engrossed in their book, sprawled between the two shelves.

Or, you might even come across that occasional person who is just looking for a quite place to nap. (Believe me I’ve seen it) You just might also come across, an adventurous couple just enjoying some private time(if you know what I mean) (p.s. that I have not seen, yet)

There is so much to see and observe in a library, that if I start to count it, its endless, but just to list a few:

– That occasional gasp or giggle from one of the patrons which lets you know that they are at an interesting place in their book.

– Sometimes, you might also see the librarian herself enjoying a book and a cup of tea and when suddenly she lets out a loud snort, the way she will furtively look around to see if anyone caught her breaking her own rules. Its hilarous.

– Also, when a person if choosing a book you can hear the quick flipping of pages, that concentrated look on their face, trying to decide whether they want to read this book or not, and if found wanting, slamming the book back into place.

There are libraries all over the world that are centuries or decades old, the history and time changes that they have gone through. They are a living testament to our ancient times and their architecture lets us have a glimpse of that time. It lets us truly appreciate our history and how far we have come across.

The paintings, the intricate designs engraved in many such libraries lets us know in more detail how beautiful that time was and how much work must have gone into making these amazing pieces of architecture.

National Library of India, Kolkata

In conclusion, yes the motto of a library is silence, but the truth is the place thrums with life. There are a myriad of people who come in every day and with them bring their differing personalities and attitudes, and they all bring their different temperaments and through this, a library gives you so much more than silence.

Yet, a library can still be a place of peace and quite. A place where one can go to escape the noise of the city, a place to rest from the hectic and fast paced lives that today’s generation lives in.

A quite place where you can get lost in your head and thoughts, or pick up a book and get lost in a magical, world far, far, away, and lose your self in the characters, yet at the same time, you never lose touch with humanity, because there is a small world cocooned in the library itself.